History

Maine Campus Compact was founded in 1994 as an organization of college and university presidents. Over the past 23 years, we have convened presidents, chief academic officers, faculty, staff, students, community partners and other constituencies across institutional types to learn from each other. In our early years we explored the relationship of community service to our academic mission. Over time, we have broadened and deepened our inquiry to look at how to foster institutional change for civic engagement, how to become partners with our local communities in responsible community development efforts, and how to support and promote faculty and student engagement. Maine Campus Compact has facilitated tremendous growth in campus civic engagement. Since 1994:

The number of Maine college students engaged in community problem-solving activities has increased from approximately 3,500 to over 10,000 annually, now contributing well over 200,000 hours of service in Maine communities each year.

The number of faculty who regularly integrate community problem-solving into courses and curricula has increased from approximately 20 to well over 350.

Over 15 staff positions have been added at our 18 member campuses to mobilize even more student and institutional resources well into the future.